Episode 5: An Interview with Ben Komets

Born and raised in Berlin, Ben Komets is a full-time miniature artist who has painted box art for Nutsplanet, Mierce Miniatures and Thirdman Studios, done instructional videos at Paintingbuddha or Miniature Mentor, and now runs his own line, Ben Komets Miniatures, releasing models from painters for painters. Several things he stresses resonate with us: “The most important part of creating ‘miniature art’ is to stay open”; “A good project is always telling a story,” and “a good project evokes emotions.”

In this episode, we discuss what we like about several of his pieces, seen below. And here are some links of interest:

Ben’s favorite white, Schminke Titanium: https://www.amazon.com/Schmincke-PRIMAcryl-Titanium-White-60ml/dp/B008LW35QA

Part 1 of the shield maiden howto videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wP3HCiHos_Q

Ben’s Web site: https://www.benkomets.com/

Ben’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ben_komets

Jim pick #1: “The Three Sisters”

Jim pick #2: “The Shield Maiden”

The prime example of Ben painting non-metallic metals that Barry mentions.

Barry pick #2: “Shaman”

Episode 4: An Interview with Penny Meyer

Based in Las Vegas, Penny has been painting since age 10, working in a large variety of media, including oils, acrylics, watercolors, gouache, pencil, pen, airbrush and linoleum printing. In the hobby, she is renowned for her gold-medal-winning flats. We talk with her about that unique form and much more. You can find more background on Penny here, here and here, and photos of some of the pieces we discuss in this episode below.

Penny mentions several other modelers who inspired her during our chat, and if you’re unfamiliar with them, you can read about and see examples of the work of Mike Taylor here; Ray Lamb here, here, and here; Bill Merklein here and here; Greg DiFranco here and here; Andrei Koribanics here; Bob Sarnowski here, here, and here; Kings Road Roscoe Turner here, and Fletcher Clement here, here, here, here, and here. More info about the Kulmbach show can be found here and here, and if you’re interested in buying flats in the United States, Jack Muldoon’s Little Tin Soldier shop should be your first stop. (It’s online here.)

Penny Meyer, “The Kid”

Barry Pick #1, “Sky Hunter”

Barry Pick #2, Edgar Allan Poe

Jim Pick #1, “Bucking Bronco”

Jim Pick #2, “St. George & the Dragon”

Episode 3: Some Tips for Modelers Who Are Reluctant to Paint Figures (and why they should try!)

Barry noticed something about some of the modelers in his Salt Lake City IPMS Group: They may be expert at finishing ordnance, but they’re reluctant (or scared to death!) to paint figures! In this episode, we discuss some of the reasons and why it seems so difficult to explain the process of figure painting. We try to convince a few more modelers to give it a try by talking about why figures can add something to your models, and offer Mr. Biediger’s patented 7 Tips for Beginning Figure Painters that will hopefully help take away some of the apprehension. Below are some of the images we discuss in this episode.

Shep Paine’s classic “stop sign” diagram.

Shep’s illustration applying the stop sign to folds in clothing (don’t JUST paint the inner fold dark!).

A figure from the cover of David Parker’s recent book CREW SCHOOL, and a good example of how Barry described painting simplified eyes in his list. (David’s book can be found here.)

Barry’s example a face primed black with white sprayed from above. And here are the Life Miniatures step-by-steps he mentioned: https://www.lifeminiatures.com/step-by-step.

Episode 2: John Rosengrant

In this episode, which you can find here or on any of your favorite podcast platforms (including Apple, Spotify, and Overcast), Barry and Jim interview John Rosengrant, who is not only an excellent modeler and figure sculptor, he has one of the coolest day jobs as a special effects artist. John has created some of the most memorable and iconic characters in movies and television. Here are some links to learn more.

Legacy Effects, the special effects company John co-founded:  https://www.legacyefx.com/

A lot of John’s modeling work can be found on the following thread at the Planet Figure forum: https://www.planetfigure.com/threads/101st-airborne-normandy.117700/

John wrote a full article about building his diorama “Leave No Man Behind” in Shep Paine's Armor Modelers Guide (edited by none other than co-host Jim DeRogatis)

Below you’ll find images of the specific pieces Jim and Barry cited as some of their favorites in this episode.

Barry's pick #1 - The True Face of War.

Jim's pick #1 - Calm Before the Storm.

Barry's pick #2 - George Preddy.

Jim's pick #2 - Valley Forge.

Leave No Man Behind.

John sculpted his own face on this rifleman from the American War for Independence.

Episode 1: Entering Your Work In Model Shows and Accepting Critiques

Welcome to Small Subjects!

In this first episode, Jim and Barry share their thoughts on accepting critiques and having your models judged at shows. Also, some thoughts on the different types of exhibitions or competitions.

You can listen here, or on any of your favorite podcast platforms. And, if you want to see examples of Jim and Barry’s work, including some of the box dioramas mentioned in this episode, you can find Jim’s artist gallery on this site here and Barry’s here.